Never Leave Me
by Herascat
Summary: Hocus Pocus - Thackery had kept his promise up to this point, but maybe it was time to let her go.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I don't own Hocus Pocus, Dani is just my favorite character and I thought she deserved a little happiness.

Thackery would never be called a liar. When he had promised Dani that he would always be with her, he fully intended to keep that promise. Granted it was a bit hard to do from the spirit realm, but her dreams made it possible. And through the years he had watched her mature both in figure and mannerisms through those dreams.

It was the only time he was able to spend with Dani and because of that limited contact he was never quite sure if she remembered him in her waking state. He knew that when her eyes closed and she dropped off into slumber she would remember both her waking activities and the discussions they would have had the night before. He never asked if she _did _remember him outside her dreams, preferring to pretend that she would always remember him. He tried not to let these thoughts bother him too much, but there was little else to do when he waited for her.

Waiting, even in death, was not one of Thackery's fortes and if you asked him Dani should have fallen asleep hours ago. But he was dead and therefore forced to wait for the mortal girl to come to him. He lamented, once again, that he had been at peace when he died and therefore unable to become a ghost. If he had done that he would have been able to see her in her own environment, interact with her. She would remember him for sure. He stopped pacing. This train of thought was getting him nowhere and he forced his mind to concentrate on something else.

She was about to pass into the dream world, Thackery could feel it in the pit of his stomach. He could always tell when she was near to him. He felt the sensation swell in his gut until she materialized in front of him and the setting changed from a stark white empty space to a deep blue bedroom. She sat herself delicately on the bed, hiding her face behind a dark curtain of auburn hair. Thackery immediately knew that something was wrong and went to sit beside her.

When he touched her shoulder, Dani turned to him. Thackery inhaled sharply when he saw her already tear stained face, which meant she had fallen asleep crying. Her clear blue eyes were tortured. "Oh Dani," He pulled her into his arms and let her cry into his shoulder. When her tears were finally spent he pulled her away to look into her face.

"Now tell me, what has you in such a state?" The soft note of concern in his voice almost brought tears to her eyes again. Seeing this Thackery placed her head between his palms, offering her the strength to tell him what had happened.

She sniffed, "My party was today. Thackery you told me it was going to be wonderful, but it wasn't."

"Oh my dear, I thought it _would_ be wonderful, that's why I told you that. How could it not be when you're surrounded by friends and family." He saw her flinch as he spoke his last three words. He was beginning to understand. "Max wasn't able to come, was he?"

When she shook her head the tears started falling again. "It isn't even that. The other people there, the ones that my parents assumed were my friends, spent the entire time whispering behind my back." Thackery brushed the tears away with the pad of his thumbs. "They talk about the fact that I'm a 'witch' and they say that I'm too weird for any normal boy to like me." The tears abruptly stopped and she pulled her face from his hands. "It's not my fault that Max is a dumbass and scarred me for life." She was starting to get irate and it sent a flush to her pale cheeks. "It's not my fault that the Sanderson Sisters showed me that there's more to life than what the Christians of the world would believe. It's not my fault that I'm not normal."

She deflated as she spoke her last sentence and refused to meet his eyes. "Dani," Thackery placed his hand on her thigh in a gesture of comfort. "You are not weird, as you put it. But you are right in a way, you aren't normal." With her shocked intake of breath he continued. "You could never be anything as mundane as normal, you Danielle Dennison are amazing. It doesn't matter what anyone else says about you, I know the truth."

Dani still refused to look at him, but a smile tugged at her lips. He was the only person she allowed to call her by her full name; most people didn't even realize what it was. "It's not that I don't appreciate what you're saying Thackery, but it does matter what those people think. Because of the way they see me I don't have any friends, I've never had a boyfriend. I mean Goddess, I'm 18 and I've never been kissed."

She didn't even try to meet his gaze instead she started to shift her body away from him. Thackery stopped her as soon as her intentions became clear. "Danielle." He was firm, but careful not to be too harsh. "Look at me." She shook her head resolutely. He was forced to tilt her chin up to face him. Every ounce of sadness and vulnerability was clear in her eyes and for the first time, with true intent, Thackery scanned her body.

Dani watched him as his hazel eyes roved over her. Her brows rose when the color of those eyes shifted to an intense green and his pupils dilated. He had never looked at her like that before, hell; no one had looked at her like that before. "Thackery, you don't have to do this." She was gaining some strength as his appraisal of her form fanned a fire burning in her chest. "You don't have to pretend that I'm attractive."

That quickly brought his eyes to meet hers. "Beautiful, magnificent, wonderful, those are words that I'd use to describe you. Not anything as commonplace as attractive." His hand moved to cup her neck gently and he leaned toward her slowly. "If they don't see what I see…then it's their loss." He closed the distance between their lips and claimed the kiss he had been craving.

Dani could feel her temperature skyrocket when their lips finally met. If she was truly honest with herself, she knew she had pushed everyone else away (especially boys) in favor of hoping for Thackery Binx. And he was finally kissing her. Skimming his sides her hands moved to grip at his shoulders, feeling the lean muscle under her fingers she moaned.

Thackery could easily have slipped his tongue into her mouth at that moment, but he didn't want to move to fast for Dani. Instead he started trailing kisses down the side of her neck nipping several times at the sensitive skin below her ear. Pulling the lobe into his mouth he whispered. "And it's my gain." His lips began moving back towards hers, chastely kissing her once more before pulling away.

The only thing that Dani was able to do when he pulled away from her was pant and stare into his eyes. "Thackery…" Her eyes darted to his lips as she pulled her bottom lip between her teeth.

He groaned at the sight. "Don't worry Dani, I understand." Now her teeth were worrying the flesh. "I don't deserve you at all and I know that this could never work, I just wanted you to know that you can be loved for who you are."

"Do you really love me Thackery Binx?"

Her lip was swollen and he couldn't bring himself to meet her gaze. "I always have Dani. It's changed over the years, but yes, I am hopelessly in love with you." He stood and walked away from her.

Dani looked down at her lap, processing this new bit of information. She knew she loved Thackery, but was she _in_ love with him. He was always there for her and he had helped her through so much. Every time he was with her she felt safe. When she wasn't with him she was thinking about him. But he was right, they really had no chance of being together with him dead and her still living. It was the type of thing that only happened in the romance novels that she liked to read. Even with all her knowledge of the supernatural…she stopped toying with the hem of her t-shirt.

That was the answer. She stood and walked to Thackery, pulling at the cotton shorts that covered part of her thigh. When she placed a hand on his shoulder he nearly jumped out of her grasp. "I love you too." She whispered, stepping closer to him and catching the kiss that he graced her lips with when he whirled to face her. This kiss was more demanding than the last. His entire body was pressed against hers and his lips were insistent. Soon her own mouth was parting to tentatively roll her tongue along his.

When Thackery felt her tongue slip into his mouth he lost all pretense of control. He pulled her body even closer and let his hands wander under her shirt to softly stroke the soft skin of her back. Propelling them back toward the bed he laid her across the blue sheets and covered her body with his own. Only when he found himself grinding against her core and Dani moaning softly into his ear did reality start to invade his thoughts. Her hands were inside his shirt and nails making red welts down his sides. "Dani," He moaned.

"Mmmm," She bit the juncture of his neck and shoulder.

He leaped back from the bed. "Dani…we can't." He watched as disheveled, Dani sat up from the bed. He could tell that she was upset, but she was hiding her annoyance well.

Dani took a deep breath before speaking. "And why can't we? I thought that it had been established that we love each other." She stood and walked closer to him.

Smiling sadly he replied, "I could never offer you anything more than what I gave you here. I could never ask you to give up a life in the living world for me, but I couldn't stand to know about you loving someone else either. I need to stop this before I can't turn away any longer." He gave a soft kiss to the palm of her hand then took a step back. "I think I may have to make a liar out of myself right now. Dani, I'm not going to see you again after tonight."

She knew he was getting ready to leave, he tried to smile at her but it was more of a grimace. "Wait!" His concentration broke and Dani didn't feel his energy dissipating anymore. The look he shot her way was one of annoyance mixed with curiosity. "What if I could bring you into my world again? Would you be willing to give up heaven and your sister to be with me there?" She couldn't get her hopes up right now, or at least that's what she kept telling herself as she waited for his reply.

Thackery took his time answering. He told himself it was to consider the question, but really he already knew the answer, it's not like he really spent a lot of time with Emily anymore. She had her own friends and the novelty of an older brother had worn off quickly. "I would give up everything just for one _day_ in the mortal world with you."

Jokingly Dani gave his body a once over and said, "Of course you would have to give up the breeches and poet's shirts." Her face dropped into seriousness. "I'm going to try my best Thackery, but I don't know if it will work. I need you to know that right now."

His arms enveloped her in a hug. "I know you'll try your best, but if it doesn't work…what then?" She could hear the hope and fear in his voice.

"If I can't do it, then I guess we'll have to go with your plan. But I want to let you know right now that I don't like your plan at all. And if I had my way you would accept that I would never be able to love anyone who wasn't you. And that would mean we could be a couple that no one knew about here and in my world I would become a spinster." She pulled away from Thackery's embrace and turned from his confused face.

"I'm going to be waking up in a minute. I will perform the spell today and if, when I fall asleep you're here I'll know you want to go with my plan. If not, then I guess this is goodbye."

Thackery didn't say anything as she faded from the room. Harsh white walls surrounded him as he finally left the dream realm.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Sorry it took me so long to update, I wanted to get the second chapter of a different fic out before I posted this one

A/N: Sorry it took me so long to update, I wanted to get the second chapter of a different fic out before I posted this one. I saw one of the pictures that I mention at exlibrislibrary./art/Dani-and-Binx-Fables-68608885 it inspired me a bit to start this fic. I hope you all enjoy the second and final chapter. If anyone finds any mistakes or such just let me know, Thanks.

Dani drifted out of her dream world with a sigh. There was so much to do today and as she looked at the clock she realized that she'd overslept. A 'damn' was muttered as she ran her palms over the gritty remnants of her tears. Getting up from the bed with stiff muscles and the clothes she wore yesterday made her mood for the day start off dismally. With not much time to spare she ran to bathroom and washed her face.

Finally coming out of the bathroom she sat at her vanity and contemplated her own reflection, Dani say hope sparkling in her green eyes for the first time since she was eight. Thackery would be coming back to her, and even if she couldn't pull it off he was going to be by her side for the rest of eternity. The vanity she sat at reflected not only her face but the girlish interior of her bedroom as she looked past herself. The room she conjured for her and Thackery was her dream room, mature and sedate the perfect room to kiss Thackery in, the complete opposite from reality. Her gaze shifted to the pictures lining the mirror. Drawings she had made of them together. Them as humans, him as a cat, them as cats even. That one was her favorite it never ceased to remind her of that night ten years ago when she had first met Thackery. The clock face caught her attention in the mirror and she swore again.

She didn't even bother changing into new clothes just threw a shawl over her shoulders covering a rumpled white peasant blouse and brown suede skirt. School was really the last thing on her mind right now but her habits were hard to break. School had become one of those habits.

And riding Max's old bike to school had become so ingrained in Dani's muscle memory that when her thoughts started drifting she just let them wander. She saw herself as an eight year old on that fateful Halloween night when she had first met Thackery she had been so happy to hold him and talk about their future. That morning when his spirit had moved on hers had been crushed. Up until now she had been content with the loving friendship he had provided. Throughout the years he had been the one she had confided in, the only one who had seen her cry and the only one who had gotten a genuine smile out of her.

A frown dropped on to her face as she thought about her family after that night. Max had been too caught up in his and Allison's budding relationship to see that the expressions that she showed him were a mask. And after Max went off to college her parents had become…she sighed this train of thought was only leading down a well traveled but painful path. They weren't even at home now and they probably wouldn't be back for another week. Right after her party last night they'd been called away on business…again.

With the school in sight Dani made her thoughts shift to the test in first period history. School was the only stable thing in her life anymore. After Thackery had left the first time that was the only thing that mattered to her and she made sure that that showed in her grades. The various facts of Russia during World War I flitted through her mind, mingling with the bitterness and pain that was left from her earlier thoughts. She knew the test would be fine, but distraction was her only escape. School that was the only thing that mattered for the next few hours.

As anticipated the test was a breeze and by the time school was out her thoughts could only shift to her love. She knew that the Sanderson house was where she needed to be but Dani found herself dawdling outside the school. Was she really ready to bring Thackery back from the dead? Was she ready to perform a spell that complex? The doubts crept in the more she thought about the situation and her forward movement stopped completely. The handles of the bike stood in front of her, unlocked from the rack and balanced between her legs. When her weight shifted on the seat the brush of foam against the juncture of her thighs reminded her of Thackery.

Last night with him had been amazing, fantastic even. She could still remember the way his eyes had darkened in desire for her, nobody before Thackery had ever looked at her with such an intensity. That look was worth her best effort and Dani found herself moving toward the old Sanderson house.

The 'For Sale' in front of the old house caught Dani slightly off guard but she slipped into the door anyway. Everything was still in the same place it had been left ten years ago when two teenagers were found hanging from the ceiling in cages. Dani knew the sale of the property was inevitable from that point nonetheless it made her gut clench. This was the place where she had first met Binx, the place where her entire view of the world had changed.

Crossing the main room to Winifred's book Dani hardly looked around her instead concentrating on her task. The dust made her want to sneeze. Every muscle in Dani's body was rigid as she finally reached the book, it was the only way but it didn't detract from the fear of the evil that the book's pages contained.

"Will you wake up for _me _book?" She watched for any indication that the book would respond. When the lone eye failed to open and the pages didn't turn spontaneously she breathed a sigh of relief. The glass encasing the flesh bound pages was easily broken and Dani started flipping through pages. There were several life restoring spells, but all of them seemed to want the raised person to be an evil minion. She looked at one that stood out. With a few tweaked words and some ingredient substitutions it looked promising. She pulled out a small spade and a Latin dictionary from her book bag and walked outside.

Dani scanned the dictionary for the words she would need as she walked to the back of the house to a small grave; the grave that she had dug herself ten years ago for her best friend. The black cat's body would be a necessary replacement for the infant's body that the spell called for. A skeleton came out of the still half frozen February earth covered in the remains of the box she had placed him in so carefully. If she could have made him a small coffin she would have, but at eight the best she was able to get for him was a sturdy cardboard box fished out of a dumpster.

That morning after, Max had gone to Allison's house and Dani had snuck back to the cemetery. Max had told her that the gravediggers there would take care of Binx's body. Dani had ignored him and taken Binx's remains to the place he had guarded every Halloween for three hundred years. Now unearthing those remains Dani found tears streaming down her cheeks. She carried him cradled in her arms her book all but forgotten in her hand.

Once the skeleton was settled on the table Dani started grabbing other ingredients and supplies. Dani drew a pentagram on the floor placing Binx in the center and surrounding his body with alternating black and white candles. When the water from a mass grave was boiling and the stench threatened to overwhelm Dani she started adding ingredients: a mandrake root, followed by a handful of wolfbane, the leaves of a chervil plant, a sprig of hawthorn, the bud of a lotus and finally the blood of a virgin. Slicing her hand with the athame Winifred had probably used to kill children in her day made Dani cringe. The red fluid dripping from her palm made the potion sizzle and turn the shade of Thackery's passion.

"Valde dea , matris nostrum totus , quisnam dat quod habitum vita audite meus placitum ego scisco vestrum iam , accerso diligo tergum quod eram pallium ex ego." There was a pause in her words as the skeleton started to take form in front of her. Thackery's body started shimmering and shrinking again before she realized that the incantation was incomplete. She hurried to finish the words. "Tribuo hec vita iterum in vestri nomen quod veneration."

When she looked into the center of the protective circle Thackery was standing there looking at her in awe.

"Dani!?" His voice was hesitant and Dani felt a wave of relief wash over her. The spell had worked and he wasn't some mindless minion. She'd done it.

"Thackery," The smile that graced her features made him smile and nod in return. "You're really _my _Thackery?" When he nodded again she could do nothing but throw herself into his arms.

"Oh my Dani, I love you so much." He wrapped his arms tighter around her and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

Her face rose to meet his eyes and when she spoke her voice quivered. "I didn't know if it was going to work I was so scared that you'd end up 'wrong' somehow." Her kiss took him by surprise and he hurried to keep up with the tongue exploring his mouth. Just as suddenly as the kiss started, it ended. "But you're you! And now everything's going to be okay."

They both laughed as the reality of what they had accomplished truly sunk in. "Yes my love, you did it and now we're going to be together forever."

"Forever…" Dani echoed the word in a soft sigh. Thackery's lips lowered to hers once more and Dani could see the colors in his eye changing to that forest green that she'd already started to love. The kiss started out hesitant with Thackery giving her quick pecks that soon turned into heady drugging kisses. Tongues languidly explored the caverns of mouths until the intensity overwhelmed them and Thackery had to pull away from her lips to drag his mouth over her neck.

The shawl that had been thrown on so carelessly that morning was now discarded just as carelessly to the corner of the room. Dani's white blouse soon followed. Thackery kissed every newly exposed inch of skin finally settling on the curve of her right breast to mark her.

Dani writhed under his skilled tongue and moaned when she felt him bite her soft flesh. Her fingers threaded through his thick blond hair and held his head to the aching points of her breasts. The fingers tightened their grip as he began sucking the hardened buds through the silk of her bra. Dani moved her hands down his back to grasp at the hem of his shirt stepping out of his grasp to pull it away from his body.

Thackery could feel the play of silk on his torso and felt himself harden to an almost painful state. He fumbled with the clasp of the bra for a moment before realizing that he'd never encountered one of them as a human before. He let her remove the barrier.

Dani's nipples hardened even further when skin met skin and if Thackery hadn't been holding her in a kiss she would have slid to the ground with the bolt of desire that shot through her. Their bodies were melding into one as Thackery pressed them closer together and started walking her backwards towards an empty wall.

Sandwiched between the cool wood of the wall and the heat of Thackery's bare torso Dani could hardly think. Then his mouth was against the skin of her breast and lights exploded behind her eyelids. Dani's hands roamed his back trying to find purchase on the damp skin to sink her nails into the flesh, she finally settled for scraping them along his spine.

He lifted his head only long enough to whisper in her ear. "I want you, Dani. Can I have you…all of you?" Her answer was another kiss that stole the breath from both sets of lungs.

"Yes, please…I want you so much." She could feel Thackery's fingers slip under her skirt to the hem of her knickers and slide them down her slender legs. The cool air hit her moist flesh as he pulled the skirt to bunch around her waist. Dani's hands wandered from their place on his back to stroke the arousal through the fabric of Thackery's breeches. Moving her fingers slightly higher Dani soon had the material pooled at his feet stroking the heat of him.

Thackery dropped his face to moan into the crook of Dani's neck when her nails traced over the responsive shaft. Not willing to be the only one at a loss for words his fingers wandered to her sex and stroked over the nubbin he found there. Dani cried out and dropped the flesh in her hand.

Knowing that Dani was a virgin made Thackery's movements languid as he positioned his flesh at her more than ready entrance. "Are you positive?" He had to ask one more time before they were both out of control and when she nodded he started inching into her vise like channel.

Every nerve ending in Dani's body was hyperaware of Thackery's movements. A moan reverberated around the room as he entered her. Dani felt the urge to push her body fully onto his but a reminder of the pain which would come made her pause. It was better to keep Thackery in control. Every muscle tensed suddenly as the first resistance was met.

Feeling the rigidity of Dani's body Thackery trust his tongue into her welcoming mouth at the same instant he pulled back and thrust into her. His mouth swallowed the cry of shock from Dani then moved to her neck, trying to relax her.

Fire. It felt like she was on fire. Dani could feel the pain of his entrance then the pleasure of his lips and the sensation of his still hips. The pain ebbed and she wiggled her hips.

At the first indication of her acquiescence Thackery pulled his length fully away from her before sliding back inside her heat slowly. The slow pace only lasted for a few thrusts before Dani's gripping walls and her breathy moans made Thackery speed up his ministrations.

Then they were meeting each other's thrusts kissing and nipping exposed flesh to mark each other. When Thackery's hand moved back between their joined bodies and ran over the bundle of nerves there it was only moments before Dani was spasming around him. Wanting nothing more than to follow his lady love into bliss Thackery let his release wash over him.

They slid to the floor boneless. Dani draped herself over Thackery's torso and waited for their breath to not come in pants. "I wish we could stay like this forever."

"Right here? In this house?"

She lifted her head to meet his gaze. "I know it's weird, but yeah. I really like this house and I met you here which makes me love it even more."

He contemplated her answer for a moment. "So you would want to live here if you could live anywhere?" When she nodded he offered her a wide smile. "Then as soon as I can get the documents in order it will be yours."

Shock at his words made Dani lift herself up to see him more clearly. "How exactly are you going to manage that?" The trepidation in her voice raised the pitch.

Thackery pulled her down to whisper in her ear. "I suppose you could say that as a cat I was a bit of a stasher. Most of the things I spirited away would be worth a pretty penny nowadays. But I need a bit of help from you; do you think that you can conjure me a bit of false paperwork for a new identity?"

Dani nodded still in shock over what he was telling her. Finally deciding that he needed more of an answer that that she elaborated. "Yeah I can get them done by tomorrow." She shifted the half of her body that was on the ground and made a face. "We need to get off the ground though. It's disgusting."

His chest vibrated beneath her when he started chuckling. "I know! I'm the one whose laying on it." Within moments her naked body was cradled in his arms and he was nuzzling her neck again. "Better?"

She nipped at his shoulder. "Much, but lets go back to my house and do this properly…in a bed." Almost pouting when he set her back on her feet, Dani instead moved to recover her clothes. When she noticed the smears of dust and grime on Thackery's back and butt she laughed. "Or maybe a go in the shower and then the bed."

"I've turned you into a sex fiend haven't I?" The expression that he donned was one of amusement and awe.

"Nope." Dani threaded her arm through his when they were finally presentable. "I just don't want to keep my hands off of you, you make me happy. Happier than I've ever been before."

A grin spread across his features and he started walking out of the house with her in tow. "Well then let's be off. I plan to make you happy for a very long time."


End file.
